


Raised by Wolves, Stronger than Fear

by charleybradburies



Series: a dead man's undeath [1]
Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Battle of Winterfell, Bittersweet, Dead Theon Greyjoy, Episode Related, Gen, House Greyjoy, House Stark, I Blame Tumblr, I Made Myself Cry, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Magic, Not Canon Compliant, POV Theon Greyjoy, Parallels, Poor Theon, Sad, Season/Series 08, Short One Shot, Theon Greyjoy Lives, Tumblr Ask Box Fic, Tumblr Prompt, What is Dead May Never Die, What-If, Winterfell
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-06
Updated: 2019-05-06
Packaged: 2020-02-27 10:59:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 570
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18737677
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/charleybradburies/pseuds/charleybradburies
Summary: What is dead may never die, and Theon's already been dead inside.AU where that counts, and Theon's family gets to keep him.[Title from "Raised by Wolves" by U2.] [Tumblr]





	Raised by Wolves, Stronger than Fear

**Author's Note:**

  * For [shannonissatan](https://archiveofourown.org/users/shannonissatan/gifts).



_“You’re a good man.”_

_What is dead may never die._

He thinks it as he charges - the last thing, he thinks, he could possibly do. He thinks it for the ironborn around him in the godswood, he worries it for the dead facing him and Bran, and he wants it for himself, for the Theon that was at Robb’s side, reborn at Sansa’s, hand gripped in hers.

 _“You don’t have the right!”_

_“To save your brother’s life?”_

_What is dead may never die._

He thinks it as he slides down into the snow, his wet hair sticking against ice, armor heavy surrounding him, pain sharp inside him. He thinks it as he fights his eyes’ desire to close, as his breathing slows.

_“I would have died to get you there.”_

_What is dead may never die._

He thinks it as he catches a glimpse of Arya’s face, as she turns into a blur, rushing past him, feet not even crunching against the ground. A ghost of Winterfell, just like him, perhaps. Like Robb, like Rickon, like the parents that had raised them all. 

He thinks it as he hears the first sound in what feels like minutes - the shatter of glass and a heavy breath to follow. The earth rocks below him, and he momentarily stops fighting against his closing eyes. 

_“You want to go to Winterfell, to fight for the Starks.”_

_What is dead may never die._

He thinks it as Arya’s face is suddenly in front of him again, hands at his shoulders, his neck, realizing he’s still somehow drawing breath. He thinks it when Jon’s joins hers, when he hears the crack of a spear and feels some of the weight lifted from his chest. He hears their voices, but can’t make out their words. All he hears is Yara’s voice in his head, and all his eyes make out is Arya in front of him, dagger in her hand one moment and gone the next. She starts fighting his armor, pulling off some of it, and he closes his eyes again.

_“I should have died with him.”_

_What is dead may never die._

He thinks it as he wakes up, on a soft bed in a warm room, familiar stone walls blurry around him as he blinks and groans from the brightness. He can make out Sansa’s face a moment later, seated on the bed’s edge and grabbing for his hands as he realizes how tight his chest feels. He weakly pushes down the fur at his neck, and realizes that it’s been wrapped, then returns Sansa’s grasp. He can hear her sigh of relief, and it feels more real than his own breathing, though he can feel it now, straining a bit against the bandages. 

_“You’re a Greyjoy, and you’re a Stark.”_

_What is dead may never die._

He thinks it as Sansa cloaks him to match Jon and sends them off - him and Jon, riding south with Northmen at their backs, to fight a Lannister army - a different ride than he’d made with Robb all those years past, and yet so similar. 

“What is dead may never die.”

He says it in greeting as he wraps his arms around Yara again, grateful for the truth of it. She says it in return, and rejoins the war - her pledge of the ironborn to Daenerys second, yet, to the bond of family between Greyjoy and Stark.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [harder and stronger](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20051149) by [charleybradburies](https://archiveofourown.org/users/charleybradburies/pseuds/charleybradburies)




End file.
